Take It to the Backseat
by laya550
Summary: It had never occurred to Juvia how much her life was going to change once she had finally realized what she was missing out on by pining over Gray for so many years.
1. Chapter 1

So this fic is for Silver Inklett since the idea for it came from her! Major shoutout to Silv for being my beta on this and for all the magnificent input/suggestions/revisions she's given our baby here. This started out as rambling about headcanons and I decided I wanted to write it for her, so here it is!

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All her life, clouds had seemed to follow her wherever she went, leaving her solemn and broken.

Of course, it wasn't literal clouds, but her hardships that always decided to kick her when she was down. At four years old, her parents went through a nasty divorce and her mother was given custody with no resistance from her father. At nine years old, Juvia had to move away from her closest friend, a troublemaker named Gajeel, thanks to her mother's promotion, and they moved around so often that it was hard for her to ever truly make another friend like the one she had left.

Her fifteenth year saw the death of her beloved mother, lost to slick roads and pouring rain that seemed to hang around in Juvia's chest long after the skies had cleared. She was shuffled off to live with a father she barely knew, in a town that felt too small and too confined.

But through it all, she adapted.

When her mother's job made them move several times a year, Juvia worked and begged until she could spend her summers with Gajeel and his family. When she got sent to her father's and the summer trips stopped, she made sure to not only keep in constant contact with Gajeel - whose tales from home and of his foster siblings antics made the world feel a little bigger - but she also worked hard so that she wouldn't have to spend a day longer than she had to with the man with her features that felt like a stranger.

When she found that her boyfriend of several years, Lyon, was a cheating scumbag, Juvia had put on her big girl pants, told him to take a hike, and swore off men for good.

That was, until she met Gray.

It was Juvia's second semester of college at Columbia University - where she could pursue a degree in earth and environmental sciences while being as far as possible away from her father - when she met him. The course they shared was one of the general education credits required of all students, and when she first saw him she swore the heavens had opened up.

He was an angel, a gift from God made specifically for her. Since then, she pined after him, but her advances were never reciprocated. He was the dam Juvia couldn't move around, the person she couldn't let go no matter how much his constant rejections stung.

Juvia's latest failed attempt to catch the eye of her long-time crush found her at the campus bar, looking for advice from one of her new college friends, a Miss Cana Alberona. They had met at the same counter Juvia sat at now. She had come hoping for relief from the heartache she had felt at the time, courtesy of seeing Gray walking across the quad holding hands with another woman, and Cana had been working as a bartender that night. They had bonded, and in the time between then and now, the two girls had spent many nights drinking and studying together, and Cana was now the first person Juvia went to whenever she was upset about Gray.

Now it was her last week of college before earning her degree, and Juvia sat at the bar nursing a mug of whatever form of liquid courage Cana had designated as a cure for a broken heart.

"C'mon doll face, Gray's not worth those tears of yours." Cana was standing behind the bar, leaning forward to peer at Juvia's puffy eyes and bright red nose. "You need to stop worrying 'bout him, he's an ass. He shoulda manned up and told you that he wasn't interested in the beginning instead of leading you on 'til now."

Letting out a loud sigh and downing the last half of her drink, Juvia looked up. How many times had she heard that advice, not just from Cana, but from Gajeel as well (though it was less "advice" and more offers to come to her campus and beat his face in)? How often had she sat at this very bar, refusing to believe that her affections would never be returned? When was the last time she had come to this bar to just have a good time instead of mope?

… She couldn't remember a single time.

She frowned at Cana, eyebrows furrowing together. "You're right," she admitted slowly, and she could see Cana's eyebrows disappear under her brown sweeps of hair. Juvia pushed on, pushed against the dam she had been stuck behind ever since her traitorous heart had latched onto Gray Fullbuster. "I need to let go of Gray. I deserve better," she said with conviction, "and I should focus on my career."

She almost immediately wanted to snag the words out of the air, forcing the admission back. Surely Gray would have to return her affection eventually, she just had to stick it out! But the proud grin on Cana's face made Juvia's resolve strengthen, and she knew she had done the right thing.

She adapted, as she was wont to do, and it felt like breathing for the first time. There would still be challenges, lord knows the heart is stubborn, but Juvia knew that this was something she'd fight to stick with. She deserved better than nights spent nursing a broken heart over a man who couldn't be bothered.

Cana was definitely in shock and awe from Juvia's admission; this was the first, and possibly the last time she would ever utter that sentence. Juvia's sudden change of heart seemed to set off a train of thoughts Cana hadn't been sure how to approach, and the words were already coming out before she could think them over more. "How 'bout this; you and me, the open road, shitty hotels, and my beat up Buick?" she offered. "We've got some time after graduation before we need to go job hunting, right? Before you say anything about how much it'd cost, I've made way more in tips working here than I'd like to admit so it's all on me. Think of it as a graduation gift, and a reward for finally pulling that pretty head of yours out of your ass," she teased, making Juvia grin.

"Hmm, I think I'll have to accept your offer," Juvia responded after a few moments of over exaggerated thinking. "But are you sure I can't cover the cost of food at least?" she inquired with her head in her hands. A patron at the other end of the bar caught Cana's attention and she raised her hand in recognition of the top-up needed on their beer as she moved down the bar.

As she filled the mug she called back to Juvia, "Well, I won't stop ya from paying for the food, but we can talk more later on. You should head home before it gets too late, doll face. Don't you have a final exam early tomorrow anyway?" Juvia went to put money down on the bar to pay for her drink before Cana waved her off. "Forget about it, it's on me tonight."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm heading home. And thanks Cana, I owe you one." Juvia reached across the counter and pulled Cana into hug, giving her a peck on the cheek. "We still on for the study party tomorrow night?"

"'Course we are, I'll bring the drinks," Cana said, turning to move some bottles and to hide the blush creeping up her neck "Anything in particular you want?"

Juvia pulled herself up from the bar stool and shook her head. "Not really, just something fruity. I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Yea, see ya, doll face." Juvia was out the door and Cana made a frustrated noise, akin to that of a dying whale.

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I hope you enjoyed it and any/all reviews are greatly appreciated!


	2. Chapter 2

So here's chapter 2! I hope everyone is enjoying it so far, you get some fluffy goodness in this chapter! Again, thank you, Silv for all the wonderful and brilliant input!

Thank you for any/all reviews!

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Papers and books were strewn around the tiny living room, covering nearly every girls had stopped studying half an hour ago at around midnight, and had run out of drinks two hours before that. Juvia was sprawled out in the middle of the floor and Cana was on her belly, using Juvia as a pillow.

"Juvia, why'd you let me drink s-o much?" Her speech was interrupted by a small hiccup and a groan from the brunette.

"Huh? Did you say something?" Grabbing a random sheet of notes near her, Juvia squinted at the paper while moving it to varying distances, trying to discern what it said and threw it aside when she concluded it was no use. "I don't think I'm going to be able to remember what I studied if we keep going; we should call it a night." When Cana didn't respond, Juvia resorted to poking her repeatedly in the side. "Come on Cana, get up please, I have to pee!"

Cana let out a whine and swatted Juvia's hand way. "Nooooo, you're too comfy. I don't wanna get up!" Juvia sighed and pushed on Cana's shoulder to roll her off. Cana's head thunked to the floor and she let out a low groan. "That was mean! Give a girl some warning next time!"

Juvia stood, making her way towards the bathroom, and called over her shoulder, "I told you I have to use the restroom, which was plenty of warning."

Cana managed to push herself up into a sitting position and started gathering up all of their notes into two piles, sorting them as she went. It wasn't hard to figure out which notes were Juvia's, considering the margins were covered with little doodles of hearts and Gray's name. Cana had mentioned the paper graffiti to Juvia earlier in the evening and why she hadn't felt the need to erase it, but was only met with a grimace, so Cana dropped the subject.

Her face fell as she thought about all the times she'd had to comfort her friend when it came to Gray. One night in particular, Juvia had shown up at Cana's dorm room at two in the morning, slightly drunk and bawling her eyes out because she had seen him out with an unknown woman, unsure if they were just friends or not. It had taken Cana twenty minutes to calm Juvia down enough just so she could get her to explain what was wrong.

Though Juvia had been the one to take the first steps to getting over him, the road trip they were leaving for in just eight days was going to be good for Juvia, Cana just knew it.

After a few minutes of continuing to separate their notes, Cana yelled towards the bathroom, "Hey doll face, you care if I crash here tonight?" Immediately regretting the choice of yelling, she held one side of her head as her blood pounded loudly in her ears, already well on her way to a possibly nasty hangover.

Popping her head out the bathroom door, Juvia had a toothbrush hanging from her mouth and her hair had been pulled up into a ponytail. "Not at all, do you need something to change into?" she asked, covering her mouth as she spoke.

"Yeah." Cana had left the living room, although she was a bit wobbly on her trek, and she had made it in front of Juvia's dresser in her bedroom. "Night clothes are in the top left drawer, right?"

"Yep! Just take whatever you need," Juvia called from the bathroom.

Rummaging through the drawer, Cana found an old t-shirt to wear, but had yet to find any pajama bottoms. Inspecting the tiny shorts in the dresser, she replied, "I don't think my ass is going to fit into any of these shorts, Juvia."

Finished in the bathroom, Juvia entered her bedroom and squatted in front of her dresser. She opened one of the lower drawers and pulled out a pair of sweats, handing them to Cana. "Here, these are too big on me, so hopefully they'll fit."

Taking the pants, Cana headed towards the bathroom across the hall. "Thanks, and dibs on the couch! Don't even try to get me to take your bed again."

"I'm just trying to be a polite host, but fine, if you say so!" Juvia shut the light off and poked her head out the door to talk to Cana. "If you need anything, just ask."

A good fifteen minutes later, after Cana had stretched out on the couch with an extra pillow and blanket from the hall closet, she heard Juvia crying accompanied by sniffles. It took her another five minutes before she worked up the nerve to gently knock on the door. "You okay in there, Juvia?"

No answer, but the sniffling had ceased.

"Can I come in, then?"

A meek 'Yes' could be heard through the door. Pushing the door open, Cana could see Juvia curled up in a ball with her back to the door, prompting Cana to crawl onto the bed over the covers to lie next to Juvia, leaning against the headboard.

Sniffling again and rolling over while wiping her eyes, Juvia mumbled, "Sorry, I didn't mean to ruin your night with my crying, Cana."

"Come off it, you didn't ruin anything. Now get over here, you deserve some good cuddle time," she chuckled, motioning Juvia over.

Juvia scooted over and rested her head against Cana while wrapping an arm around her middle. She had hoped that making the promise to herself and to Cana meant no more nights spent crying over her broken heart, but it seemed she needed more than just sheer determination to heal those kinds of wounds. "Thank you, Cana. You're a good friend," she murmured, tucking her face against Cana's hip.

"Anything for you doll face, you know that. Who needs men anyway?" she chimed while threading her fingers through the hair hanging from Juvia's ponytail.

Juvia hummed contently, "You can get under the blanket, y'know. I'm not going to bite."

Cana snorted at that. "Fine, fine." She shimmied under the covers a moment later and Juvia was right next to her again, arm once again slung across Cana's middle.

"Where should we go first on our trip?" Juvia asked softly, half-asleep already.

Cana regarded Juvia's peaceful countenance, becoming so enthralled with everything about Juvia in that moment that a huge smile had plastered itself to her face, and she nearly missed what Juvia had said. Every nerve in her body was aflame just from how close they were when she responded to the question. "You've got family in Colorado, don't ya? We could just head that way at a nice, leisurely pace."

Juvia yawned and pressed her face into Cana's side. The thought of visiting Gajeel and his family made her grin, but she was too tired to get properly excited. "Yeah I do, and that sounds good to me," she murmured, "but I'm going to sleep now."

"Looks like we're on the same page then. See ya in the mornin' doll face." Cana mumbled the last part, but Juvia's eyes had already fallen closed.

Although she was tired, Cana couldn't seem to shut down her brain. She'd fallen for Juvia the moment they had met in that bar, but she has always been under the impression that nothing would ever transpire between them. No sweet nothings whispered to the other, no endless nights mapping out each other's bodies, no beautifully domestic afternoons of Juvia sitting in her lap with a book and a mug of hot tea.

A pang shot through her heart at the thought of all the hurt Juvia had already endured and she was resolute in the fact that as long as she was allowed to be Juvia's friend and make her happy, then that's all she needed.

It didn't take long after that for Juvia's even breaths to lull Cana to sleep, all thoughts of one sided affections losing their sting as she lay curled up with the woman whose happiness she would give anything to guarantee.


End file.
